Cyclone Vayu leads to cleanest city air quality

Mumbai: Mumbai’s air saw significant improvement even as the cleanest air quality of 2019 was recorded Thursday.

The city recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI), an indicator of pollutants in the air, of 41 in the morning which falls under the “good” category, as per the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR).

The weathermen attributed the development to good wind speed and rainfall owing to Cyclone Vayu that passed parallel to Mumbai Wednesday.

The overall PM10 levels, arising from dust pollution, were recorded at 48, which again falls under the “good” category while PM2.5 levels, arising from vehicular and industrial emission, were recorded at 21 (yet again the “good” category).

Dr Gufran Beig, project director, SAFAR, said, “Cyclone Vayu has brought cold moisture into the city’s atmosphere and the pollutants are being absorbed on its way, resulting in good air quality.”

Dr Beig further said that due to the high speed of wind, pollutants were getting dispersed. Mazagaon and Worli recorded the cleanest air on Thursday while Malad recorded the poorest AQI at 261. Navi Mumbai, too, recorded “good” AQI at 47

“The air quality is expected to remain the same for the next two days, after which the AQI will be on the higher side,” Dr Beig said.

Meanwhile Skymet Weather, a private weather forecasting agency stated that rains in Mumbai are likely to continue for the next two-three days with rainfall activity slightly intensified.

“The cyclone is moving away and weakening however, moisture is available in abundance resulting in rains over the Mumbai region once again. Sky conditions will remain cloudy over Mumbai with the possibility of some lightning and thunderstorm as well,” read the report.